"Maktub" means "It is written." The Arabs feel that "It is

written" is not really a good translation, because, although everything
is already written, God is compassionate, and wrote it all down just to
help us.

The wanderer is in New York. He has overslept an

appointment, and when he leaves his hotel, he finds that his car has
been towed by the police. He arrives late for his appointment, the
luncheon lasts longer than necessary, and he is thinking about the fine
he will have to pay. It will cost a fortune.

Suddenly, he remembers

the dollar bill he found in the street the day before. He sees some
kind of weird relationship between the dollar bill and what happened to
him that morning. "Who knows, perhaps I found that money before the
person who was supposed to find it had the chance? Maybe I removed that
dollar bill from the path of someone who really needed it. Who knows
but what I interfered with what was written?"

He feels the need to rid

himself of the dollar bill, and at that moment sees a beggar sitting on
the sidewalk. He quickly hands him the bill, and feels that he has
restored a kind of equilibrium to things. "Just a minute," says the
beggar. "I'm not looking for a handout. I'm a poet, and I want to read
you a poem in return." "Well, make it a short one, because I'm in a
hurry," says the wanderer.

The beggar says, "If you are still living,

it's because you have not yet arrived at the place you should be."

Think of the lizard. It spends most of its life on the ground,

envying the birds and indignant at its fate and its shape. "I am the
most disliked of all the creatures," it thinks. "Ugly, repulsive, and
condemned to crawl along the ground."

One day, though, Mother Nature

asks the lizard to make a cocoon. The lizard is startled -- it has
never made a cocoon before. He thinks that he is building his tomb, and
prepares to die. Although unhappy with the life he has led up until
then, he complains to God: "Just when I finally became accustomed to
things, Lord, you tak
>away what little I have." In desperation, he locks himself into the
cocoon and awaits the end. Some days later, he finds that he has been
transformed into a beautiful butterfly. He is able to fly to the sky,
and he is greatly admired. He is surprised at the meaning of life and
at God's designs.

A stranger sought out the Father Superior at the monastery of

Sceta.

"I want to make my life better," he said. "But I cannot

keep myself from having sinful thoughts." The father noticed that the
wind was blowing briskly outside, and said to the stranger: "It's quite
hot in here. I wonder if you could seize a bit of that wind outside and
bring it here to cool the room."

"That's impossible," the stranger

said. "It is also impossible to keep yourself from thinking of things
that offend God," answered the monk. "But, if you know how to say no to
temptation, they will cause you no harm."

The master says: "If a decision needs to be made, it is better to

make it and deal with the consequences. You cannot know beforehand what
those consequences will be. The arts of divination were developed in
order to counsel people, never to predict the future. They provide good
advice, but poor prophecy.

"In one of the prayers that Jesus taught

us, it says, 'God's will be done.' When His will causes a problem, it
also presents a solution.

If the arts of divination were able to

predict the future, every soothsayer would be wealthy, married and
content."

The disciple approached his master: "For years I have been seeking

illumination," he said. "I feel that I am close to achieving it. I
need to know what the next step is."

"How do you support yourself?"

the master asked. "I haven't yet learned how to support myself; my
parents help me out. But that is only a detail."

"Your next step is

to look directly at the sun for half a minute," said the master. And
the disciple obeyed.

When the half-minute was over, the master asked

him to describe the field that surrounded them. "I can't see it. The
sun has affec
>d my vision," the disciple said.

"A man who seeks only the light,

while shirking his responsibilities, will never find illumination. And
one who keep his eyes fixed upon the sun ends up blind," was the
master's comment.

A man was hiking through a valley in the Pyrenees, when he met an

old shepherd. He shared his food with him, and they sat together for a
long time, talking about life.

The man said that, if one believed

in God, he would also have to admit that he was not free, since God
would govern every step.

In response, the shepherd led him to a

ravine where one could hear -- with absolute clarity -- the echo to any
sound.

"Life is these walls, and fate is the shout that each of us

makes," said the shepherd. "What we do will be raised to His heart, and
will be returned to us in the same form. "God acts as the echo of our
own deeds."

The master said: "When we sense that the time has come for a

change, we begin -- unconsciously -- to run the tape again, to view
every defeat we have experienced until then.

"And, of course, as we

grow older, our number of difficult moments grows larger. But, at the
same time, experience provides us with better means of overcoming those
defeats, and of finding the path that allows us to go forward. We have
to play that second tape on our mental VCR, too.

"If we only watch

the tape of our defeats, we become paralyzed. If we only watch the tape
of our successes, we wind up thinking we are wiser than we really are.

"We need both of those tapes."

The disciple said to his master:

"I have spent most of the day

thinking about things I should not be thinking about, desiring things I
should not desire and making plans I should not be making." The master
invited the disciple to take a walk with him through the forest behind
his house. Along the way, he pointed to a plant, and asked the disciple
if he knew its name.

"Belladonna," said the disciple. "It can kill

anyone who eats its leaves." "But it cannot kill anyone who simply
observes it," said the master.
>"Likewise, negative desires can cause no evil if you do not allow
yourself to be seduced by them."

Between France and Spain is a range of mountains. In one of those

mountains, there is a village named Argeles, and in the village is a
hill leading to the valley.

Every afternoon, an old man climbs and

descends the hill. When the wanderer went to Argeles for the first
time, he was not aware of this. On his second visit, he noticed that he
crossed paths with the same man. And every time he went to the village,
he perceived the man in greater detail -- his clothing, his beret, his
cane, his glasses. Nowadays, whenever he thinks about that village, he
thinks of the old man, as well -- even though he is not aware that this
is true.

Only once did the wanderer ever speak to the man. In a

joking fashion, he asked the man, "Do you think that God lives in these
beautiful mountains surrounding us?"

"God lives," said the old man,

"in those places where they allow Him to enter."

The master met one night with his disciples, and asked them to

build a campfire so they could sit and talk.

"The spiritual path is

like a fire that burns before us," he said. "A man who wants to light
the fire has to bear with the disagreeable smoke that makes it difficult
for him to breathe, and brings tears to his eyes. That is how his faith
is rediscovered. However, once the fire is rekindled, the smoke
disappears, and the flames illuminate everything around him -- providing
heat and tranquility." "But what if someone else lights the fire for
him?" asked one of the disciples. "And if someone helps us to avoid the
smoke?"

"If someone does that, he is a false master. A master

capable of taking the fire to wherever he desires, or of extinguishing
it whenever he wants to do so. And, since he has taught no one how to
light the fire, he is likely to leave everyone in the darkness."

"When you strike out along your path, you will find a door with a

phrase written upon it," says the master. "Come back to me, and tell me
what
>e phrase says." The disciple gives himself to the search, body and
soul, and one day comes upon the door, and then returns to his master.

"What was written there was 'THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE,' he says." "Was

that written on a wall or on a door?" the master asks.

"On a door,"

the disciple answers.

"Well, then, put your hand on the doorknob and

open it."

The disciple obeyed. Since the phrase was painted with the

door, it gave way just as the door itself did. With the door completely
open, he could no longer see the phrase -- and he went on.

The master says: "Close your eyes. Or even with your eyes open,

imagine the following scene: a flock of birds on the wing. Now, tell me
how many birds you saw: Five? Eleven? Sixteen?"

Whatever the

response -- and it is difficult for someone to say how many birds were
seen -- one thing becomes quite clear in this small experiment. You can
imagine a flock of birds, but the number of birds in the flock is beyond
your control. Yet the scene was clear, well-defined, exact. There must
be an answer to the question.

Who was it that determined how many

birds should appear in the imagined scene? Not you!

A man decided to visit a hermit who, he had been told, lived not

far from the monastery at Sceta. After wandering aimlessly about the
desert, he finally found the monk. "I need to know what is the first
step that should be taken along the spiritual path," he said.

The

hermit took the man to a small well, and told him to look at his
reflection in the water. The man tried to do so, but as he made his
attempt, the hermit threw pebbles into the water, causing the surface to
be disturbed.

"I won't be able to see my face in the water if you

keep throwing those pebbles," said the man.

"Just as it is

impossible for a man to see his face in troubled waters, it is also
impossible to seek God if one's mind is anxious about the search," said
the monk. "That is the first step!"

During the period when the wanderer was practicing Zen meditation,

his master, one da
> went to one corner of the dojo (the site where his disciples
congregated), and returned with a bamboo switch. Some of his students -
- those who had not been able to concentrate well -- raised their hand.
The master approached each of them and delivered three blows with the
switch on each shoulder.

When he saw this for the first time, the

wanderer regarded it as medieval and absurd. Later, he understood that
it is often necessary to transfer spiritual pain to the physical plane
in order to perceive the evil that it creates. On the road to Santiago,
he had learned an exercise that involved the digging of the nail of his
index finger into the skin of his thumb whenever he had thoughts that
were critical of himself.

The terrible consequences of negative

thoughts are perceived only much later. But by allowing such thoughts
to manifest themselves as physical pain, we are able to understand the
damage they cause. And then we are able to banish them.

A 32 year old patient sought out the therapist, Richard Crowley.

"I cannot stop sucking my thumb," he complained.

"Don't be

too concerned about that," Crowley told him. "But suck on a different
finger each day." The patient tried to do as instructed. But each time
he brought his hand to his mouth, he had to make a conscious choice as
to which finger should be the object of his attention that day. Before
the week was over, the habit was cured.

"When a vice becomes a habit,

it is difficult to deal with," Richard Crowley says. "But when it
requires of us that we develop new attitudes, make new decisions and
choices, we become aware that it is not worth the effort."

In ancient Rome, a group of soothsayers known as the Sybils wrote

nine books that forecasted the future of the Roman empire. They took
the books to Tiberius. "How much do they cost?" asked the Roman
emperor.

"One hundred pieces of gold," answered the Sybils.

Tiberius angrily banished them from his sight.

The Sybils

burned three of the books, and returned. "They still cost one hundr
> pieces of gold," they told Tiberius.

Tiberius laughed and refused:

why would he pay for six books what nine of them had cost? The Sybils
burned three more books, and returned with the remaining three. "The
price is still one hundred pieces of gold," they said.

Tiberius,

consumed with curiosity, decided to pay. But he was able to read only a
part of the future of his empire.

The master says: "It is an

important part of living not to bargain when presented with
opportunities."

Two rabbis are trying everything possible to provide spiritual

comfort to the Jews in Nazi Germany. For two years, frightened
unbearably, they are able to evade their persecutors and perform their
religious functions in various communities.

They are finally taken

prisoner. One of the rabbis, terrified at what might happen to him,
prays constantly. The other, however, spends the entire day sleeping.

"Why are you behaving like this?" asks the frightened rabbi.

"In order to conserve my strength. I know that I'll be needing it

later on," said the other.

"But aren't you afraid? We don't know

what's going to happen to us."

"I was afraid up until the time we

were captured. Now that I'm a prisoner, what good would it do to fear
what might happen to me. The time for fear has ended; now is the time
for hope."

The master says: "Volition. This something about which people

have been suspicious for a long time.

"How many are the things we

fail to do because we lack the volition, and how many because they are
risky?

An example of what we misperceive as a "lack of volition:"

Speaking to strangers. Be it a conversation, a simple contact or a
release, rarely do we speak to strangers.

"And we always say that

it's better that way.

"So we wind up not being of help and not being

helped by Life.

"Our distance makes us appear to be important and sure

of ourselves. But actually, we are not allowing the voice of our angel
to manifest itself through the words of others."

An elderly hermit was once invited to appear at the

>ourt of the most powerful king of that age.

"I envy a holy man who

can be content with so little," said the king. "I envy Your Majesty,
who is content with even less than I," answered the hermit. "What do you
mean? This entire country belongs to me," said the king, offended.

"Exactly," said the old hermit. "I have the music of the spheres,

I have the rivers and the mountains all over the world. I have the moon
and the sun, because I have God in my soul. Your Majesty, though, has
only this kingdom."

"Let's go to the mountain where God abides," said a cavalier to

his friend. "I want to prove that all He knows how to do is to ask
things of us, while he does nothing to provide us with relief from our
burdens."

"Well, I'm going there to demonstrate my faith," said the

other.

They arrived at the top of the mountain at night -- and they

heard a voice in the darkness: "Load down your horses with the stones
from the ground." "See?!" said the first cavalier. "After a climb like
that, he wants to make us carry an even heavier burden. I shall not
obey!"

The second did as the voice had bidden. As he reached the

foot of the mountain, it was dawn, and the first rays of the sun shone
upon the stone that the pious cavalier had carried: they were the purest
of diamonds."

The master says: "God's decisions are mysterious; but

they are always in our favor."

The master says: "My dear fellow, I have to tell you something

that you perhaps don't know. I have been thinking about how to make
this news less difficult to hear -- how to paint it in brighter colors,
add to it promises of Paradise, visions of the Absolute, provide
esoteric explanations -- but they do not apply. "Take a deep breath, and
prepare yourself. I have to be blunt, and I assure you, I am absolutely
certain of what I'm telling you. It is an infallible prediction,
without any doubt whatsoever. "It's the following: you are going to die.

"It may be tomorrow or fifty years from now, but -- sooner or

later --you are going to die. Even if yo
>would rather not. Even if you have other plans.

"Think carefully

about what you are going to do today. And tomorrow. And with the rest
of your life."

An explorer, a white man, anxious to reach his destination in the

heart of Africa, promised an extra payment to his bearers if they would
make greater speed. For several days, the bearers moved along at a
faster pace.

One afternoon, though, they all suddenly put down

their burden and sat on the ground. No matter how much money they were
offered, they refused to move on. When the explorer finally asked why
they were behaving as they were, he was given the following answer:

"We have been moving along at such a fast pace that we no longer

know what we are doing. Now we have to wait until our soul catches up
with us."

Our Lady, with the infant Jesus in her arms, came down to earth to

visit a monastery. In their joy, the padres stood in line to pay their
respects: one of them recited poetry, another showed Her illuminated
images for the Bible, another recited the names of all of the saints.

At the end of the line was a humble padre who had never had the

chance to learn from the wise men of his time. His parents were simple
people who worked in a traveling circus. When his turn came, the monks
wanted to end the payment of respects, fearful that he would damage
their image.

But he, too, wanted to show his love for the Virgin.

Embarrassed, and sensing the disapproval of the brothers, he took some
oranges from his pocket and began to toss them in the air -- juggling as
his parents with the circus had taught him.

It was only then that

the infant Jesus smiled and clapped his hands with joy. And it was only
to the humble monk that the Virgin held out her arms, allowing him to
hold her Son for a while.

Do not always try to be consistent. Saint Paul, after all, said,

"The wisdom of the world is madness in the eyes of God."

To be

consistent is always to wear a tie that matches one's socks. It is to
have the same opinions tomorrow as one has today.
>And the movement of the planet? Where is it? So long as you do no
harm to another, change your opinion once in a while. Contradict
yourself without being embarrassed. This is your right. It doesn't
matter what others think -- because that's what they will think, in any
case. So, relax. Let the universe move about. Discover the joy of
surprising yourself. "God selected the crazy things on the earth so as
to embarrass the wise men," said Saint Paul.

The master says: "Today would be a good day for doing something

out of the ordinary. We could, for example, dance through the streets
on our way to work. Look directly into the eyes of a stranger, and
speak of love at first sight. Give the boss an idea that may seem
ridiculous, an idea we've never mentioned before. The Warriors of the
Light allow themselves such days.

"Today, we could cry over some

ancient injustices that still stick in our craw. We could phone someone
we vowed never to speak to again (but from whom we would love to receive
a message on the answering machine). Today could be considered a day
outside the script that we write every morning. "Today, any fault will
be permitted and forgiven. Today is a day to enjoy life."

The scientist, Roger Pemrose, was walking with some friends and

talking animatedly. He fell silent only in order to cross the street.

"I remember that -- as I was crossing the street -- an incredible

idea came to me," Pemrose said. "But, as soon as we reached the other
side, we picked up where we left off, and I couldn't remember what I
thought of just a few seconds earlier."

Late in the afternoon, Pemrose

began to feel euphoric -- without knowing why. "I had the feeling that
something had been revealed to me," he said. He decided to go back over
every minute of the day, and -- when he remembered the moment when he
was crossing the street -- the idea came back to him. This time, he
wrote it down.

It was the theory of black holes, a revolutionary

theory in modern physics. And it came back to him becaus
>Pemrose was able to recall the silence that we always fall into as we
cross a street.

Saint Anton was living in the desert when a young man approached

him. "Father, I sold everything I owned, and gave the proceeds to the
poor. I kept only a few things that could help me to survive out here.
I would like you to show me the path to salvation."

Saint Anton asked

that the lad sell the few things that he had kept, and -- with the money
-- buy some meat in the city. When he returned, he was to strap the
meat to his body. The young man did as he was instructed. As he was
returning, he was attacked by dogs and falcons who wanted the meat.

"I'm back," said the young man, showing the father his wounded

body and his tattered clothing.

"Those who embark in a new direction

and want to keep a bit of the old life, wind up lacerated by their own
past," said the saint.

The master says: "Make use of every blessing that God gave you

today. A blessing cannot be saved. There is no bank where we can
deposit blessings received, to use them when we see fit. If you do not
use them, they will be irretrievably lost.

"God knows that we are

creative artists when it comes to our lives. On one day, he gives us
clay for sculpting, on another, brushes and canvas, or a pen. But we
can never use clay on our canvas, nor pens in sculpture.

"Each day

has its own miracle. Accept the blessings, work, and create your minor
works of art today.

"Tomorrow you will receive others."

The monastery on the bank of the Rio Piedra is surrounded by

beautiful vegetation -- it is a true oasis within the sterile fields of
that part of Spain. There, the small river becomes a mighty current,
and is split into dozens of waterfalls.

The wanderer is walking

through the area, hearing the music of the waters. Suddenly, a grotto -
- behind one of the cataracts -- captures his attention. He studies the
rocks, worn by time, and regards the lovely forms created patiently by
nature. And he finds a verse by R. Tagore inscribed on a plaque: "It
>as not a hammer that made these rocks so perfect, but water -- with its
sweetness, its dance and its song." Where force can only destroy,
gentleness can sculpt.

The master says: "Many people are fearful of happiness. For such

persons, to be content in life means they must change a number of their
habits -- and lose their sense of identity.

"Often we become

indignant at the good things that befall us. We do not accept them,
because to do so causes us to feel that we are in God's debt.

"We

think: 'Better not to drink from the chalice of happiness, because, when
it is empty, we will suffer greatly.'

"Out of a fear of shrinking,

we fail to grow. Out of a fear of weeping, we fail to laugh."

One afternoon at the monastery at Sceta, one of the monks offended

another. The superior of the monastery, Brother Sisois, asked that the
offended monk forgive his aggressor.

"I cannot do that," responded

the monk. "It was he that did this, and it he who must pay."

At

that very moment, Brother Sisois raised his arms to heaven and began to
pray: "My Jesus, we no longer have need of thee. We are now capable of
making the aggressor pay for his offenses. We are now able to take
vengeance into our own hands, and to deal with Good and Evil.
Therefore, You can leave us on our own, and their will be no problem."

Ashamed, the monk immediately pardoned his brother.

A disciple said, "All masters say that spiritual treasure is

discovered through solitary search. So, then, why are we all together
here?"

"You are together because a forest is always stronger than a

solitary tree," the master answered. "The forest conserves humidity,
resists the hurricane and helps the soil to be fertile. But what makes
a tree strong is its roots. And the roots of a plant cannot help
another plant to grow. "To be joined together in the same purpose is to
allow each person to grow in his own fashion, and that is the path of
those who wish to commune with God."

When the wanderer was ten years old, his mother insisted that he

tak
>a course in physical education. One of the activities required him to
jump from a bridge into a river.

Early in the course, he was

paralyzed by fear. Each day, he stood last in line, and suffered every
time one of those in front made his jump -- because it would shortly be
his turn. One day, the instructor -- noticing his fear -- made him
take the first jump. Although he was still frightened, it was over so
quickly that the fright was replaced by courage.

The master says:

"Often, we can afford to take our time. But there are occasions

when we must roll up our sleeves and resolve a situation. In such
cases, there is nothing worse than delay."

Buddha was seated among his disciples one morning when a man

approached the gathering.

"Does God exist," he asked.

"Yes, God

exists," Buddha answered.

After lunch, another man appeared. "Does

God exist?" he asked. "No, God does not exist," Buddha answered.

Late in the day, a third man asked Buddha the same question, and

Buddha's response was: "You must decide for yourself."

"Master,

this is absurd," said one of the disciples. "How can you give three
different answers to the same question?" "Because they were different
persons," answered the Enlightened One. "And each person approaches God
in his own way: some with certainty, some with denial and some with
doubt."

We are all concerned with taking action, doing things, resolving

problems, providing for others. We are always trying to plan something,
conclude something else, discover a third.

There is nothing wrong

with that -- after all, that is how we build and modify the world. But
the act of Adoration is also a part of life.

To stop from time to

time, to escape one's self, and to stand silent before the Universe.

To kneel down, body and soul. Without asking for something,

without thinking, without even giving thanks for anything. Just to
experience the warmth of the love that surrounds us. At such moments,
unexpected tears may appear -- tears neither of happiness nor sadness.
Do

not

>e surprised at that. It is a gift. The tears are cleansing your soul.

The master says: "If you must cry, cry like a child. "You were

once a child, and one of the first things you learned in life was to
cry, because crying is a part of life. Never forget that you are free,
and that to show your emotions is not shameful. "Scream, sob loudly,
make as much noise as you like. Because that is how children cry, and
they know the fastest way to put their hearts at ease.

"Have you

ever noticed how children stop crying? They stop because something
distracts them. Something calls them to the next adventure.

"Children stop crying very quickly. "And that's how it will be for

you. But only if you can cry as children do."

The wanderer is having lunch with a woman friend, an attorney in

Fort Lauderdale. A highly animated drunk at the next table insists on
talking to her throughout the meal. At one point, the friend asks the
drunk to quiet down. But he says: "Why? I'm talking about love in a
way that a sober person never does. I'm happy, I'm trying to
communicate with strangers. What's wrong with that?" "This isn't the
appropriate time," she said. "You mean there are only certain times
that are appropriate for showing one's happiness?"

With that, the

drunk is invited to share her table.

The master says: "We must care for our body. It is the temple of

the Holy Spirit, and deserves our respect and affection.

"We must

make the best use of our time. We must fight for our dreams, and
concentrate our efforts to that end.

"But we must not forget that

life is made up of small pleasures. They were placed here to encourage
us, assist us in our search, and provide moments of surcease from our
daily battles.

"It is not a sin to be happy. There is nothing wrong

in -- from time to time -- breaking certain rules regarding diet, sleep
and happiness.

"Do not criticize yourself if -- once in a while --

you waste your time on trifles. These are the small pleasures that
stimulate us."

The pianist Art

>r Rubinstein was late arriving for lunch at a first class restaurant in
New York. His friends began to be concerned, but Rubinstein finally
appeared, with a spectacular blonde, one-third his age, at his side.
Known to be something of a cheapskate, he surprised his friends by
ordering the most expensive entree, and the rarest, most sophisticated
wine. When lunch was over, he paid the bill with a smile. "I can see
that you are all surprised," Rubinstein said. "But today, I went to my
lawyer's to prepare my will. I left a goodly amount to my daughter and
to my relatives, and made generous donations to charities. But I
suddenly realized that I wasn't included in the will; everything went to
others.

"So, I decided to treat myself with greater generosity."

While the master was traveling to spread the word of God, the

house in which he lived with his disciples burned down.

"He

entrusted the house to us, and we didn't take proper care," said one of
the disciples. They immediately began to rebuild on what remained after
the fire, but the master returned earlier than expected, and saw what
they were doing. "So, things are looking up: a new house," he said
happily.

One of the disciples, embarrassed, told him what had

actually happened; that where they had all lived together had been
consumed by fire. "I don't understand," said the master. "What I am
seeing is men who have faith in life, beginning a new chapter. Those
who have lost everything they owned are in a better position than many
others, because, from that moment on, things can only improve."

The master says: "If you are traveling the road of your dreams,

be committed to it. Do not leave an open door to be used as an excuse
such as, 'Well, this isn't exactly what I wanted.' Therein are
contained the seeds of defeat.

"Walk your path. Even if your steps

have to be uncertain, even if you know that you could be doing it
better. If you accept your possibilities in the present, there is no
doubt that you will improve in the future. But if you
>eny that you have limitations, you will never be rid of them.

"Confront your path with courage, and don't be afraid of the

criticism of others. And, above all, don't allow yourself to become
paralyzed by self-criticism. "God will be with you on your sleepless
nights, and will dry your tears with His love. God is for the valiant."

The master and his disciples were traveling, and, on the road,

were unable to eat properly. The master asked some of them to go and
seek food. The disciples returned at the end of the day. Each brought
with him the little he had been able to gain through the charity of
others: fruit that was already going bad, stale bread and bitter wine.

One of the disciples, however, brought with him a bag of ripe

apples.

"I would do anything to help my master and my brothers," he

said, sharing the apples with the others. "Where did you get these?"
asked the master. "I had to steal them," the disciple answered. "People
were giving me only spoiled food, even though they knew that we were
preaching the word of God."

"Get away with your apples, and never come

back," said the master. "Anyone who would rob for me, would rob from
me."

We go out into the world in search of our dreams and ideals.

Often we make inaccessible that which is within our reach. When we
realize the error, we feel we have wasted our time, seeking in the
distance what was close at hand. We blame ourselves for making such a
mistake, for our useless search and for the problems we have caused.

The master says: "Although the treasure may be buried in your

house, you will find it only if you leave in search of it. If Peter had
not experienced the pain of rejection, he would not have been chosen as
the head of the Church. If the prodigal son had not abandoned
everything, he would not have been given a feast by his father.

"There

are certain things in our lives that carry a seal that says: 'You will
appreciate my value only after you have lost me...and recovered me.' It
does no good to try to shorten the path."
>

The master was meeting with his favorite disciple, and asked him

how his spiritual progress was going. The disciple answered that he was
now able to dedicate every moment of his day to God. "So, then, all
that's left is to forgive your enemies," said the master.

The disciple

looked at his master, startled:

"But that's not necessary. I bear

no ill will toward my enemies."

"Do you think that God bears you any

ill will?" asked the master. "Of course not," the disciple answered.

"Yet you ask for his forgiveness, don't you? Do the same with

your enemies, even though you bear them no ill will. A person who
forgives is washing and perfuming his own heart."

The young Napoleon was trembling like a reed in the wind during

the ferocious bombardments at Toulon. A soldier, seeing him that way,
said to his fellow soldiers, "Look at him, he's scared to death." "Yes,
I am," replied Napoleon. "But I go on fighting. If you felt half the
fear I feel, you would have fled a long time ago."

The master says:

"Fear is not a sign of cowardice. It is fear that allows us be

brave and dignified in the face of life's situations. Someone who
experiences fear -- and despite the fear goes on, without allowing it to
intimidate him -- is giving proof of valiance. But someone who tackles
difficult situations without taking the danger into account, is proving
only his irresponsibility."

The wanderer is at the feast of Saint John, with its tents,

archery contests and country food. Suddenly, a clown begins to mimic
his gestures. People laugh, and the wanderer laughs, as well, and
invites the clown to have coffee with him.

"Commit to life!" says

the clown. "If you are alive, you have to shake your arms, jump around,
make noise, laugh and talk to people. Because life is exactly the
opposite of death.

"To die is to remain forever in the same

position. If you are too quiet, you are not living."

DI_a!?_ayyyyyRyyyyyyyyyy_y," he said. "My friend is a veterinarian. He
doesn't talk to his patients."

A disciple and his master were walking in the fields one morning.

The disciple was asking what diet was needed to provide purification.
Although his master had always insisted that all foods were holy, the
disciple did not believe it. "There must be some meal that brings us
closer to God," the disciple said. "Well, perhaps you are right. Those
mushrooms there, for example," said the master. The disciple was
excited, thinking that the mushrooms would provide him with purification
and ecstasy. But as he stooped to pick one he screamed:

"These are

poisonous! If I were to eat even one of them, I would die instantly!"
he said, horrified.

"Well, I don't know any other food that would

bring you so quickly to God," said the master.

In the winter of 1981, the wanderer is walking with his wife

through the streets of Prague, when he sees a boy doing drawings of some
neighborhood buildings. He likes what he sees, and decides to buy one.

When he holds out the money, he notices that the boy has no gloves

-and the temperature is in the 20s. "Why don't you wear gloves?" he
asks. "So that I can hold my pencil."

They talk a bit about Prague.

The boy offers to do a drawing of the wanderer's wife's face, free of
charge.

As he waits for the drawing to be completed, the wanderer

realizes that something strange had happened: he had conversed for
almost five minutes with the boy, and neither spoke the other's
language.

They had used only gestures, smiles and facial expressions -

- but the will to share something had allowed them to enter into the
world of language without words.

A friend took Hassan to the door of a mosque, where a blind man

was begging.

"This blind man is the wisest person in our country,"

said the friend. "How long have you been blind," Hassan asked the man.

"Since birth," the man answered.

"And how did you become so

wise?"

"Since I didn't accept my blindness, I tried to become a

>astronomer," the man answered. "But, since I couldn't see the heavens,
I was forced to imagine the stars, the sun and the galaxies. And, the
closer I came to God's work, the closer I came to His wisdom."

In a bar in a remote village in Spain, close to the city of Olite,

there is a sign placed there by the owner.

"Just as I succeeded in

finding all the answers, all the questions changed." The master says:

"We are always concerned with finding answers. We feel that

answers are important to understand what life means. "It is more
important to live fully, and allow time to reveal to us the secrets of
our existence. If we are too concerned with making sense of life, we
prevent nature from acting, and we become unable to read God's signs."

There is an Australian legend about a shaman who was walking with

his three sisters when they met the most famous warrior of the time.

"I want to marry one of these beautiful girls," the warrior said.

"If one of them marries, the other two will suffer, said the

shaman. "I am looking for a tribe that allow its men to have three
wives."

For years, they walked the entire Australian continent

without finding such a tribe. "At least one of us could have been
happy," said one of the sisters when they were old, and sick of walking.

"I was wrong," said the shaman. "But now it's too late."

And he

turned the three sisters into blocks of stone, so that all who passed by
would understand that one person's happiness does not mean others must
be sad.

The journalist, Walter Carelli, went to interview the Argentine

writer, Jorge Luis Borges. When his interview had been completed, they
began to talk about the language that exists beyond words, and about the
human being's great capacity to understand others.

"I will give you

an example," said Borges.

And he began to speak in a strange

language. Then he stopped and asked the journalist what he had been
saying.

Before Carelli could respond, the photographer who was with

him said: "It's the 'Our Father.'" "Exactly," s
>d Borges. "I was reciting it in Finnish."

An animal trainer with the circus is able to dominate elephants by

using a very simple trick: when the animal is still a child, he lashes
one of his legs to the trunk of a tree.

No matter how hard he

struggles, the young elephant is unable to free himself. Little by
little, he becomes used to the idea that the trunk of the tree is more
powerful than he is. When he becomes an adult possessing tremendous
strength, one has only to tie a string about the elephant's leg, and tie
him to a sapling. He will not attempt to free himself.

As with

elephants, our feet are often bound by fragile ties. But since, as
children, we became accustomed to the strength of the tree trunk, we do
not dare to struggle.

Without realizing that a simple courageous act

is all that is needed to find our freedom.

The master says: "It avails you nothing to seek explanations

about God. You can listen to beautiful words, but they are basically
empty. Just as you can read an entire encyclopedia about love without
knowing how to love.

"No one will ever prove that God exists.

Certain things in life simply have to be experienced -- and never
explained. "Love is such a thing. God -- who is love -- is also such a
thing. Faith is a childhood experience, in that magical sense that
Jesus taught us: 'Children are the kingdom of God.'

"God will never

enter your head. The door that He uses is your heart."

The abbot always said that Abbot Joseph had prayed so much that he

no longer had anything to worry about -- his passions had been
conquered. Those words reached the ears of one of the wise men at the
monastery of Sceta, who called his novitiates together after their
evening meal.

"You have heard it said that Abbot Joseph has no

further temptations to overcome," he said. "The lack of a struggle
weakens the soul. Let us ask that the Lord send down a powerful
temptation to Abbot Joseph. And, if he is able to resist that
temptation, let us ask for another and another.
>nd when he is once again struggling to resist temptation, let us pray
that he never says: 'Lord, take this devil away.' Let us pray that
instead he asks: 'Lord, give me the strength to win out over evil'"

There is a moment in every day when it is difficult to see

clearly: evening time. Light and darkness blend, and nothing is
completely clear nor completely dark. In most spiritual traditions,
this moment is considered holy.

The Catholic tradition teaches us

that we should say a Hail Mary at six o'clock in the evening. In the
Quechuan tradition, if we run into a friend in the afternoon and we are
still with him at evening time, we must start all over, greeting him
again with a "Good evening." At dusk, the balance between man and the
planet is tested. God mixes shadow and light to see if the Earth has
the courage to go on turning. If the Earth is not frightened by the
darkness, night passes -- a new sun shines the next day.

The German philosopher, Schopenhauer, was strolling along a street

in Dresden, seeking the answers to questions that bothered him. Passing
by a garden, he decided to sit and look at the flowers.

One of the

residents of the neighborhood observed the philosopher's strange
behavior and summoned the police. Minutes later, an officer approached
Schopenhauer.

"Who are you," the officer asked brusquely.

Schopenhauer looked the policeman up and down. "If you can help

me find the answer to that question," he said, "I will be eternally
grateful to you."

A man searching for wisdom decided to go up into the mountains,

since he had been told that every two years God appeared there.

During

his first year there, he ate everything that the land had to offer.
Eventually, the supply was exhausted, and he had to return to the city.

"God is unfair!" he exclaimed. "Didn't he know that I waited for

a year to hear his voice. I was hungry and had to come back to town."

At that moment, an angel appeared. "God would like very much to

talk with you," the angel said. "For an entire year
>he fed you. He was hoping that you would produce your own food after
that. But what did you plant? If a man is unable to grow fruit where
he lives, he is not ready to talk with God."

People say, "Well, it seems that freedom for man consists of

choosing his own brand of slavery. I work eight hours a day, and if I
get a promotion, I'll have to work twelve. I got married, and now I
have no time to myself. I looked for God, and now I have to attend cult
meetings, masses and other religious ceremonies. Everything that's
important in life -- love, work, faith -- winds up becoming a burden
that's too heavy to bear."

The master says: "Only love allows us to

escape. Only love turns slavery into freedom. "If we cannot love, it
is better to stop now. Jesus said: 'Better to be blind in one eye than
for the entire body to perish in darkness.'

"Hard words. But true."

A hermit fasted for an entire year, eating only once a week.

After this sacrifice, he asked that God reveal to him the true meaning
of a certain passage in the Bible. No response was heard. "What a
waste of time," the hermit said to himself. "I gave up so much, and God
didn't even answer! Better to leave these parts and find a monk who
knows the meaning of the verse."

At that moment, an angel appeared.

"The twelve months of fasting served only to make you believe that

you were better than others, and God does not answer a vain person," the
angel said. "But when you were humble, and sought help from others, God
sent me."

And the angel explained what he wanted to know.

The master says: "Notice how certain words were formed so as to

show their meaning clearly. "Let us take the word "preoccupation." It
can be divided in two: "pre" and "occupation." It means to occupy
oneself with something before it happens. "Who, in the entire universe,
could have the gift of occupying himself with a thing that has not yet
happened?

Never be preoccupied. Be attentive to your destiny and to

your path. Learn everything you need to know
>n order to handle the bright sword entrusted to you. Pay attention to
how your friends, your masters and your enemies fight.

"Train

yourself sufficiently, but do not commit the worst of errors: believing
that you know what kind of blow your adversary is going to deliver."

Friday comes, you go home, and you pick up the newspapers that you

weren't able to read during the week. You turn on the television with
the sound off. You put on a cassette tape. You use the remote control
to jump from one channel to the other, as you try to turn the pages of
the paper and listen to the music. The papers contain nothing new, the
TV programs are repetitious, and you've already heard the cassette
dozens of times. Your wife is attending to the children, sacrificing
her youthful years without really understanding why she is doing so.

An excuse occurs to you: "Well, that's the way life is." No,

that's not the way life is. Life is enthusiasm. Try to remember where
it was that you hid away your enthusiasm. Take your wife and children
with you and try to find it again, before it's too late. Love never
kept anyone from following his dream.

On Christmas Eve, the wanderer and his wife did an evaluation of

the year that was about to end. During dinner at the only restaurant in
a village in the Pyrenees, the wanderer began to complain about
something that hadn't gone the way he thought it should have.

His

wife stared at the Christmas tree decorating the restaurant. The
wanderer thought that she was no longer interested in the conversation,
and changed the subject:

"Aren't the lights on the tree pretty!" he

said. "They are," his wife answered. "But if you look closely, among
the dozens of bulbs there is one that has burned out. It seems to me
that, instead of seeing the past year in terms of the dozens of
blessings that illuminated it, you are fixating on the only bulb that
illuminated nothing."

"Look at that humble holy man, walking the road", said one devil

to another. "I think I'll go over there and con
>er his soul."

"He won't listen to you, because he is concerned only

with holy things," said his companion.

But the devil, in his usual

ardent fashion, dressed himself as the Archangel Gabriel, and appeared
before the holy man.

"I have come to help you," he said. "You must

have me confused with someone else," answered the holy man. "I have
done nothing in my life to deserve the attention of an angel."

And he

continued on his way, never knowing what he had avoided.

A friend of the wanderer went to a play on Broadway, and went out

for a drink during the intermission. The lobby was crowded, and people
were smoking, talking and drinking. A pianist was playing, but no one
paid any attention to his music. The wanderer's friend sipped her drink
and studied the musician. He seemed bored -- just doing his job and
waiting for the intermission to end.

After another drink, and

feeling a bit high, she approached the piano.

"You're a pain in the

neck! Why don't you play just for yourself?" she exclaimed.

The

pianist was surprised. And then he began to play the kind of music he
liked. In just a few minutes, the entire lobby fell silent.

When

the song was over, there was enthusiastic applause.

Saint Francis of Assisi was a very popular young man when he

decided to leave it all behind and do his life's work. Saint Clare was
a beautiful young woman when she took her vow of chastity. Saint
Raimundo Lull knew the great intellectuals of his time when he went off
into the desert. The spiritual quest is, above all, a challenge.
Whoever uses it to flee from his problems will not go very far.

It

does no good for someone who cannot make friends to retire from the
world. It accomplishes nothing to take a vow of poverty if you are
already unable to earn a living. And it makes no sense to become humble
if one is already a coward.

It is one thing to have something and give

it up. It is another not to have something and to condemn those who
have. It is easy for a weak man to go around preaching absolute cha
>ity, but what good is it?

The master says: "Praise the Lord's work.

Conquer yourself as you confront the world."

It is easy to be difficult. All we have to do is stay away from

people, and in that way, avoid suffering. That way, we don't have to
risk love, disappointment, frustrated dreams.

It is easy to be

difficult. We don't have to be concerned about phone calls we should
have made, people who ask us for help, charity that should be extended.

It is easy to be difficult. We just have to pretend that we live

in an ivory tower, and never shed a tear. We just have to spend the
rest of our lives playing a role.

It is easy to be difficult. All we

have to do is reject everything good that life offers.

The patient said to his physician, "Doctor, I am ruled by fear,

and fear has taken away all joy."

"Here in my office, there is a mouse

that nibbles at my books," the doctor said. "If I become desperate over
the mouse, he will hide from me, and I'll do nothing else with my life
but hunt for him. Instead, I have put all of my best books in a safe
place, and I allow him to eat at some of the others. "That way, he
continues to be only a mouse, and not a monster. Fear a few things, and
concentrate all of your fear on them -- so you can be courageous in
facing the important things."

The master says: "Often it is easier to love than to be loved.

"We find it hard to accept the help and support of others. Our

attempts to appear independent deprive others of the opportunity to
demonstrate their love. "Many parents, in their old age, rob their
children of the chance to show them the same affection and support they
received as children. Many husbands (and wives), when they are
overtaken by affliction, feel ashamed at depending upon others. As a
result, the waters of love do not spread. "You should accept a gesture
of love from someone. You have to allow others to help you, to give you
the strength to go on. "If you accept such love with purity and
humility, you will understand that Love is n
>ther giving nor receiving -- it is participating."

Eve was walking through the Garden of Eden, when the serpent

approached her.

"Eat this apple," he said.

Eve, well taught by God,

refused.

"Eat this apple," the serpent insisted. "Because you have

to become more beautiful for your husband."

"I don't need it," Eve

answered. "He has no one else but me."

The serpent laughed: "Of

course he does." Since Eve did not believe him, he took her to the top
of a hill where there was a well.

"She's down there. That's where

Adam hid her."

Eve looked in and saw a beautiful woman reflected in

the water. And then she ate the apple the snake offered.

Excerpts from a "Letter to my Heart:"

"My heart, I will never

condemn you or criticize you. Nor will I ever be ashamed of what you
say. I know that you are a beloved child of God, and that He protects
you within a glorious and loving radiance."

"I believe in you, my

heart. I am on your side, and I will always ask for blessing in my
prayers. I will always ask that you find the help and support you
need."

"I believe in you, my heart. I believe that you will share

your love with anyone who needs or deserves it. That my path is your
path, and that we will walk together to the Holy Spirit."

"I ask of

you: trust in me. Know that I love you and that I am trying to give you
all the freedom you need to continue beating joyfully in my breast. I
will do everything I can so that you never feel uncomfortable with my
presence surrounding you."

The master says: "When we decide to act, it is natural that

unexpected conflict should arise. It is natural that we will be wounded
as a result of such conflict. "Wounds heal: they stay on as scars, and
that is blessing. Such scars stay with us for the rest of our lives,
and are of great help to us. If at some point -- for whatever reason --
our desire to return to the past is strong, we have only to look at our
scars.

"Scars are the marks of handcuffs, and remind us of the

horrors of prison -- and with that reminde
> we move forward again."

In his Epistle to the Corinthians, Saint Paul tells us that

sweetness is one of the main characteristics of love. Let us never
forget: love is tenderness. A rigid soul does not allow the hand of God
to mold it in accordance with His desires.

The wanderer was

traveling a narrow road in the north of Spain, when he saw a man
stretched out in a bed of flowers. "Aren't you crushing those flowers?"
the wanderer asked.

"No," the man answered. "I'm trying to take a

bit their sweetness from them."

The master says: "Pray every day. Even if your prayers are

wordless and ask for nothing, and can hardly be understood. Make a
habit of your prayers. If that is difficult at the beginning, decide
for yourself: 'I am going to pray every day this week.' And renew that
promise for each of the next seven days. "Remember that you are
creating not only a more intimate link with the spiritual world; you are
also training your will. It is through certain practices that we
develop the discipline needed for life's combat.

"It does no good

to forget the resolution one day and pray twice the next. Nor to pray
seven times the same day, and go through the rest of the week thinking
that you have completed your task. "Certain things have to occur with
the right pace and rhythm."

An evil man, about to die, meets an angel at the gates to Hell.

The angel says to him: "It is enough for you to have done one good

thing in your life, and that will help you."

"Think hard," the angel

said. The man remembers that one time, as he was walking through a
forest, he saw a spider in his path and detoured so as not to step on
it.

The angel smiles and a spider web comes down from the sky,

allowing the man to ascend to Paradise. Others among the condemned take
advantage of the web, and begin to make the climb. But the man turns on
them and begins to push them off, fearing that the web will break.

At that moment, it breaks, and the man is once again returned to

Hell. "What a pity," the man hears the
>gel say. "Your concern with yourself turned the only good thing you
ever did into evil."

The master says: "A crossroad is a holy place. There, the

pilgrim has to make a decision. That is why the gods usually sleep and
eat at crossroads.

"Where roads cross, two great forces are

concentrated -- the path that will be chosen, and the path to be
ignored. Both are transformed into a single path, but only for a short
period of time.

"The pilgrim may rest, sleep a bit, and even consult

with the gods that inhabit the crossroad. But no one can remain there
forever: once his choice is made, he has to move on, without thinking
about the path he has rejected.

"Otherwise, the crossroad becomes a

curse."

Humanity has committed some of its worst crimes in the name of the

truth. Men and women have been burned at the stake. The entire culture
of some civilizations has been destroyed. Those who committed the sin
of eating meat were kept at a distance. Those who sought a different
path were ostracized.

One person, in the name of truth, was crucified.

But -- before He died -- He left us a great definition of the Truth.

It is not what provides us with certitudes.

It is not what

makes us better than others. It is not what we keep within the prison
of our preconceived ideas.

The Truth is what makes us free. "Know

the Truth, and the truth will make thee free," He said.

One of the monks at the monastery at Sceta committed a grave

error, and the wisest of hermits was summoned by the brothers to judge
him. The wise hermit did not want to come, but the group was so
insistent that he agreed. Before he left his place, though, he took a
bucket and made some holes in its bottom. Then, he filled it with sand,
and began his walk to the monastery.

The father superior, noticing

the bucket, asked what it was for. "I have come to judge another," the
hermit said. "My sins are running out behind me, as does the sand in
this bucket. But, since I do not look behind me, and cannot see my own
sins, I am able to jud
> another." The monks immediately decided not to proceed with the
judgment.

Written on the wall of a small church in the Pyrenees:

"Lord,

may this candle I have just lit

Make light, And illuminate me when I

have problems and make decisions.

May it make fire, So that You can

burn away my egotism, pride and impurity. May it make a flame,

So

that You can warm ny heart and teach me to love.

I cannot remain

for long in Your church. But in leaving this candle, a bit of myself
remains here. Help me to extend my prayer to the activities of this
day. Amen."

A friend of the wanderer decided to spend a few weeks at a

monastery in Nepal. One afternoon, he entered one of the many temples
of the monastery, and saw a smiling monk seated on the altar.

"Why

are you smiling," he asked.

"Because I understand the meaning of

bananas," said the monk, opening his bag and taking out a rotten banana.
"This is a life that ran its course, and was not made use of -- and now
it is too late." Then he removed from his bag a banana that was still
green. He showed it to the man, and put it back in his bag. "This is a
life that has not yet run its course, and awaits the right moment," he
said. Finally, he took from his bag a ripe banana, peeled it, and shared
it with the man, saying:

"This is the present moment. Know how to

live it without fear."

A woman friend had gone out with the exact amount of money she

needed to take her son to the movies. The boy was excited, and every
minute asked his mother how long it would take to get there.

When

she was stopped at a traffic light, she saw a beggar seated on the
sidewalk. "Give all the money you have with you to him," she heard a
voice say. The woman argued with the voice. She had promised to take
her son to the movies. "Give it all," the voice insisted. "I can give
him half, and my son can go in alone while I wait outside," she said.

But the voice didn't want to discuss it. "Give it all!" She

had no time to explain it all to the boy. She stopped the c
> and held out all the money she had to the beggar.

"God exists, and

you have proved it to me," the beggar said. "Today is my birthday. I
was sad, and ashamed to be begging. So, I decided not to beg: if God
exists, he will give me a present."

A man is walking through a small village in the middle of a

downpour, and sees a house burning. As he approaches it, he sees a man
surrounded by flames seated in the living room. "Hey, your house is on
fire!", the traveler shouts. "I know that," the man answers.

"Well

then, why don't you get out?" "Because it's raining," says the man. "My
mother always told me you can catch pneumonia going out in the rain."

Zao Chi's comment about the fable: "Wise is the man who can leave

a situation when he sees that he is forced to do so."

In certain magic traditions, disciples devote one day a year -- or

a weekend if it is needed -- to enter into contact with the objects in
their home. They touch each object and ask aloud: "Do I really need
this?" They take the books from their shelves: "Will I ever reread
this?" They examine each souvenir they have kept: "Do I still consider
the moment that this object reminds me of to be important?" They open
all of their closets: "How long is it since I wore this? Do I really
need it?"

The master says: "Objects have their own energy. When they

are not used, they turn into standing water in the house -- a good place
for rot and for mosquitos.

"You must be attentive, and allow that

energy to flow freely. If you keep what is old, the new has no place in
which to manifest itself."

There is an old Peruvian legend that tells of a city where

everyone was happy. Its inhabitants did as they pleased, and got along
well with each other. Except for the mayor, who was sad because he had
nothing to govern. The jail was empty, the court was never used, and
the notary office produced nothing, because a man's word was worth more
than the paper it was written on.

One day, the mayor called in some

workmen from a distant place to bui
> an enclosure at the center of the village's main square. For a week,
the sound of hammers and saws could be heard.

At the end of the week,

the mayor invited everyone in the village to the inauguration. With
great solemnity, the fence boards were removed and there could be
seen...a gallows. The people asked each other what the gallows was doing
there. In fear, they began to use the court to resolve anything that
before had been settled by mutual agreement. They went to the notary
office to register documents that recorded what before had simply been a
man's word. And they began to pay attention to what the mayor said,
fearing the law. The legend says that the gallows never was used. But
its presence changed everything.

The master says: "From now on -- and for the next few hundred

years -- the universe is going to boycott all those have preconceived
ideas. The energy of the Earth has to be renewed. New ideas need
space. The body and the soul need new challenges. The future is
knocking on our door, and all ideas -- except those that are based upon
preconceptions -- will have a chance to appear. "What is important will
remain; what is useless will disappear. But let each person judge only
his own concepts. We are not the judges of the dreams of others. In
order to have faith in our own path, it is not necessary to prove that
another's path is wrong. One who does that does not believe in his own
steps."

Life is like a great bike race, the goal of which is to live one's

own Personal Destiny.

At the starting line, we are all together,

sharing camaraderie and enthusiasm. But, as the race develops, the
initial joy gives way to challenges: exhaustion, monotony, doubts as to
one's ability. We notice that some friends refuse to accept the
challenges -- they are still in the race, but only because they cannot
stop in the middle of a road. There are many of them. They ride along
with the support car, talk among themselves and complete the task.

We find ourselves outdistancing them; and then

>e have to confront solitude, the surprises around unfamiliar curves,
problems with the bicycle. We wind up asking ourselves if the effort is
worth it.

Yes, it is worth it. Don't give up.

A master and his disciple are riding across the Saudi Arabian

desert. The master makes use of every moment of their ride to teach the
disciple about faith. "Trust in God," he says. "God never abandons his
children." At night, in their camp, the master asks the disciple to tie
the horses to a nearby rock. The disciple goes to the rock, but
remembers what the master has taught him: "He must be testing me," he
thinks. "I should leave the horses to God." And he leaves the horses
unfettered. In the morning, the disciple sees that the horses have
disappeared. Revolted, he comes back to his master. "You know nothing
about God," he exclaims. "I left the horses in His care, and now the
animals are gone."

"God wanted to care for the horses," the master

answered. "But to do that, he needed your hands to tie them."

"Perhaps Jesus sent some of his apostles to Hell to save souls,"

John says. "Even in Hell, all is not lost."

The idea surprises the

wanderer. John is a fireman in Los Angeles, and today is his day off.

"Why do you say that?" the wanderer asks. "Because I've gone

through Hell here on earth. I go into buildings that are in flames and
see people desperate to escape, and many times I risk my life to save
them. I'm only a particle in this immense universe, forced to act like
a hero in the many fires I've fought. If I -- a nothing -- can do such
things, imagine what Jesus could do! I have no doubt that some of His
apostles have infiltrated Hell, and are there saving souls."

The master says: "A great many of the primitive civilizations

practiced the custom of burying their dead in a fetal position. "He is
being born again, in another life, and we must place him in the same
position he was in when he came into this world," they said. For those
civilizations, death was only another step along the
>th of the universe.

"Little by little, the world has lost its calm

acceptance of death. But it's not important what we think, or what we
do or what we believe in: each of us will die one day.

"Better to

do as the old Yaqui indians did: regard death as an advisor. Always
ask: 'Since I'm going to die, what should I be doing now?'"

Life is not about giving or receiving advice. If we need

assistance, it is better to see how others solve -- or fail to solve --
their problems.

Our angel is always present, and often uses someone

else's lips to tell us something. But it usually reaches us in a casual
way, generally at a moment in which -- although we are attentive -- our
preoccupations prevent us from seeing the miracle of life. We must
allow our angel to speak to us in the way he knows best -- when he
thinks it is needed.

The master says: "Advice is a theory about life

-- and the practice of life is generally quite different."

A padre in the Charismatic Renewal movement in Rio de Janeiro was

riding on a bus when he suddenly heard a voice saying that he should
stand up and preach the word of Christ right there. The padre began to
converse with the voice: "They'll think I'm ridiculous! This is no
place for a sermon." But the voice insisted that he had to speak out.
"I'm a timid man, please don't ask this of me," he implored.

The

internal impulse persisted.

Then he remembered his promise -- to

accept all of Christ's designs. He stood up -- consumed with
embarrassment -- and began to speak of the Evangelist. The riders
listened to him in silence. He looked at each of the passengers, and
all were staring directly at him. He said everything that he was
feeling, completed his sermon and sat down.

Even today, he has no

idea what task he was performing there on the bus. But that he was
performing a mission, he has no doubt whatsoever.

An African witch doctor is leading his novice through the jungle.

Although he is quite elderly, he makes his way with agility, while his
young novice slips a
> falls many times. The novice picks himself up, swears, spits on the
traitorous ground and continues to follow his master. After a long hike,
they reach a sacred place. Without pausing, the witch doctor turns
around and begins to walk back to where they had started.

"You have

taught me nothing today," says the novice, after falling again.

"I

have been teaching you something, but you have failed to learn it," says
the witch doctor. "I'm trying to teach you how to deal with life's
mistakes." "And how should I deal with them?" "The same way as you
should deal with the falls you have taken," answers the witch doctor.
"Instead of cursing the place where you fall, you should try to find out
what made you slip in the first place."

The father superior of the monastery at Sceta was visited one

afternoon by a hermit. "My spiritual advisor does not know how to
direct me," the hermit said. "Should I leave him?"

The father

superior said not a word, and the hermit returned to the desert. A week
later, he returned to visit the father superior.

"My spiritual

advisor does not know how to direct me," he said. "I have decided to
leave him." "That is wise," said the father superior. "When a man
perceives that his soul is discontented, he cannot ask for advice. Make
the decisions needed to preserve your passage through this life."

A young woman comes to see the wanderer. "I want to tell you

something," he says.

"I have always believed that I had the gift of

curing. But I never had the courage to try it with anyone. Until one
day, my husband was having great pain in his left leg, and there was no
one available to help him. I decided -- with some embarrassment -- to
place my hands on his leg and ask that the pain disappear. "I did this
without really believing I would be able to help him, and as I did so, I
heard him praying. 'Please, Lord, make my wife capable of being the
Messenger of Your light and your strength,' he said. My hand began to
become hot, and the pain disappeared.

"Afterwards, I ask

> him why he had prayed that way. He answered that it was in order to
give me confidence. Today, I am able to cure, thanks to those words."

The philosopher, Aristipus, was enjoying his power at the court of

Dionysus, the tyrant of Syracuse. One afternoon, he came upon Diogenes
preparing a meal of lentils for himself. "If you were willing to be
courteous to Dionysus, you would not have to eat lentils," Aristipus
said. "If you knew how to enjoy lentils, you would not have to be
courteous to Dionysus," Diogenes answered.

The master says: "It is

true that everything has its price, but the price is always relative.
When we follow our dreams, we may give the impression to others that we
are miserable and unhappy. But what others think is not important.
What is important is the joy in our heart."

A man who lived in Turkey was told of a great master who lived in

Persia. Without hesitation, he sold all of his belongings, said good-
bye to his family and went off in search of wisdom.

After several

years of wandering, he found the hut where the great master lived. With
fear and respect, he knocked on his door. The great master appeared.

"I am from Turkey," the man said. "I have come all this way to

ask you just one question."

The old man was surprised, but said,

"Fine. You may ask me one question."

"I want to be clear about what

it is that I am asking. May I say it in Turkish?"

"Yes," said the

wise man. "And I have already answered your only question. "If there
is anything else you want to know, ask your heart. It will provide you
with the answer." And he closed the door.

The master says: "The word is power. Words transform the world,

and man as well. "We have all heard it said: 'We should not talk about
the good things that have happened to us, because the envy of others
will ruin our happiness.'

"Nothing of the sort. Those who are

winners speak with pride of the miracles in their lives. If you release
positive energy into the air, it attracts more positive energy, and
makes t
>se who really wish you well happy. "As for the envious and defeated,
they can only do damage to you if you give them this power. "Have no
fear. Speak out about the good things in your life to whoever will
listen. The Soul of the World has a great need for your happiness."

There was a Spanish king who was very proud of his lineage. He

was also know to be cruel to those who were weak. He was walking one
day with his senior people through a field in Aragon, where, years
before, his father had fallen in battle. They came upon a holy man
there, picking through an enormous pile of bones.

"What are you

doing there?" asked the king. "All honor to Your Majesty," said the holy
man. "When I learned that the king of Spain was coming here, I decided
to recover the bones of your father to give them to you. But no matter
how hard I look, I cannot find them. They are the same as the bones of
the farmers, the poor, the beggars and the slaves."

"Who is the best swordsman?" asked a warrior of his master. "Go to

the field near the monastery," his master answered. "There is a rock
there. I want you to insult the rock."

"But why would I do that?" the

disciple asked. "The rock will not respond."

"Well, then attack it

with your sword," the master said. "I won't do that, either," the
disciple answered. "My sword would break. And if I attack the rock
with my hands, I'll injure my fingers and have no impact on it. That
wasn't what I asked. Who is the best swordsman?"

"The best is the

one who is like the rock," said his master. "Without unsheathing a
sword, it demonstrates that no one can conquer it."

The wanderer arrives at the village of San Martin de Unx, in

Navarra, and is able to find the woman who keeps the key to the Roman
church in the ruined place. With great kindness, she climbs the narrow
stairs and opens the door.

The darkness and the silence of the

medieval temple have an emotional impact on the wanderer. He falls into
conversation with the woman, and as they talk, mentions that, altho
>h it is mid-day, little can be seen of the beautiful works of art there
in the church.

"The detail can be seen only at dawn," the woman says.

"The legend says that it was this that the builders of the church wanted
to teach us: that God has a particular time for showing us His glory."

The master says: "There are two gods. The god that our

professors taught us about, and the God who teaches us. The god of whom
people always speak, and the God that speaks to us. The god we have
learned to fear, and the God who speaks to us of compassion.

"There

are two gods. The god who is on high, and the God who takes part in our
daily lives. The god who makes demands upon us, and the God who pardons
our debts. The god who threatens us with the fires of Hell, and the God
who shows us the best path.

"There are two gods. A god who crushes us

under our sins, and a God who liberates us with His love."

The sculptor, Michelangelo, was once asked how it was that he

could create such beautiful works. "It's very simple," he answered.
"When I look at a block of marble, I see the sculpture inside it. All I
have to do is remove what doesn't belong."

The master says: "There

is a work of art each of us was destined to create. That is the central
point of our life, and -- no matter how we try to deceive ourselves --
we know how important it is to our happiness. Usually, that work of art
is covered by years of fears, guilt and indecision. But, if we decide
to remove those things that do not belong, if we have no doubt as to our
capability, we are capable of going forward with the mission that is our
destiny. That is the only way to live with honor."

An old man who is about to die calls a young man to his side and

tells him a story of heroism: in wartime, he had helped a man to
survive. He provided the man with shelter, food and protection. When
the man who had been saved was once again in a safe place, he decided to
betray his saviour and turn him over to the enemy.

"How did you

escape?" the young man asked
>

"I didn't escape. I was the betrayer," said the old man. "But in

telling the story as if I were the hero, I can understand everything he
did for me."

The master says: "We all need love. Love is a part of human

nature, as much as eating, drinking and sleeping. Sometimes we find
ourselves, completely alone, looking at a beautiful sunset, and we
think: 'This beauty isn't important, because I have no one to share it
with.'

"At such times, we should ask: how often have we been asked

to give love, and turned away? How many times have we been fearful of
approaching someone and saying, unmistakably, that we love them?

"Beware of solitude. It is as much of an addiction as the most

dangerous narcotic. If the sunset no longer makes sense to you, be
humble, and go in search of love. Know that -- as with other spiritual
blessings -- the more you are willing to give, the more you will receive
in return."

A Spanish missionary was visiting an island when he came upon

three Aztec holy men.

"How do you pray?" the padre asked. "We have

only one prayer," one of the Aztecs answered. "We say, 'God, you are
three and we are three. Have pity on us.'"

"I'm going to teach you

a prayer that God will hear," said the missionary. And he taught them a
Catholic prayer, and went on his way. Shortly before returning to
Spain, he stopped again at the same island.

When his ship approached

the shore, the padre saw the three holy men walking across the water
toward him. "Father, father," one of them said. "Please teach us again
that prayer that God listens to. We have forgotten the words."

"It's

not important," the padre answered, having witnessed the miracle. And
he asked God's pardon for not having understood that He speaks all
languages.

Saint John of the Cross teaches us that, along our spiritual path,

we should not look for visions, or believe the statements we hear from
others on the same path. Our only support should be our faith, because
that faith is clear, transparent and born within us. It cannot
> confused. A writer was conversing with a priest, and asked what it was
to experience God. "I don't know," the priest answered. "The only
experience I have had so far is the experience of my faith in God."

And that is the most important.

The master says: "Forgiveness is a two-way street. Each time we

forgive someone, we are also pardoning ourselves. If we are tolerant of
others, it is easier to accept our own mistakes. That way, without
guilt or bitterness, we are able to improve our approach to life. "When,
out of weakness, we allow hatred, envy and intolerance to vibrate around
us, we wind up being consumed by the vibrations.

"Peter asked

Christ: 'Master, should I forgive the other person seven times?' And
Christ answered: 'Not just seven, but seventy times.' "The act of
forgiving cleanses the astral plane, and shows us the true light of the
Divinity."

The master says: "The ancient masters were accustomed to creating

"personages" to help their disciples to deal with the darker side of
their personality. Many of the stories about the creation of such
personages have become well-known fairy tales. "The process is simple:
you have only to place your anxieties, fears and disappointments within
an invisible being who stands at your left side. He functions as a
"villain" in your life, suggesting attitudes that you would not like to
adopt -- but wind up doing so. Once that personage is created, it is
easier to reject his advice. "It's extremely simple. And that's why it
works so well."

"How can I know what is the best way to act in my life?" a

disciple asked his master.

The master asked that the disciple build a

table. When the table was almost finished -- needing only the nails
driven into the top -- the master approached the disciple. The disciple
was driving the nails with three precise strokes. One nail, though, was
more difficult, and the disciple had to hit it one more time. The
fourth blow drove it too deep, and the wood was scarred.

"Your hand

was used to three blows o
>the hammer," the master said. "When any action becomes habitual, it
loses its meaning; and it may wind up causing damage."

"Every

action is your action, and there is only one secret: never let the habit
take command of your movements."

Near the city of Soria, in Spain, there is an ancient hermitage

carved into the rocks. Some years ago a man who abandoned everything to
dedicate himself to contemplation lived there. The wanderer is trying
to find the place one autumn afternoon, and, when he does, he is
received with total cordiality.

After sharing a piece of bread, the

hermit asked that the wanderer go with him to a small stream nearby to
collect some edible mushrooms.

As they walk, a boy approaches them.

"Holy man," he says, "I have been told that, in order to achieve

enlightenment, we should avoid eating meat. Is that true?" "Accept with
joy everything that life offers you," the man answered. "Do not commit
sins against the spirit, but do not blaspheme the earth's generosity."

The master says: "If your journey is difficult, listen to your

heart. Try to be as honest as possible with yourself, and see whether
you are really following your path and paying the price for your dreams.

"If you do this, and nevertheless your life is hard, the moment

comes when it is right to complain. But do it with respect, as a child
complains to a parent. But do not fail to ask for more attention and
help. God is Father and Mother, and parents always want the best for
their children. It may be that the learning process is being pushed too
hard, and it costs nothing to request a pause, some affection.

"But

never exaggerate. Job complained at the proper time, and his belongings
were returned to him. Al Afid complained too much, and God stopped
listening."

DI_a!?_ayyyyyRyyyyyyyyyy_y all that work for nothing?'"

A pious man found himself suddenly deprived of all of his wealth.

Knowing that God would help him no matter what, he began to pray: "Lord,
please let me win the lottery," he asked. He prayed for years and years,
but was still poor. One day he died, and -- since he was a very pious
man, he went straight to heaven.

When he arrived there, he refused to

enter. He said that he had lived his entire life according to his
religious teachings, and that God had never allowed him to win the
lottery. "Everything You promised me was a lie," the man said,
disgusted. "I was always ready to help you win," the Lord responded.
"But, no matter how much I wanted to do so, you never bought a lottery
ticket."

An aged Chinese wise man was walking through a field of snow, when

he came upon a woman weeping. "Why are you crying?" he asked.

"Because I'm thinking about my life, my youth, the beauty that I

saw in the mirror and the men I loved. God is cruel to have given the
ability to remember. He knew that I would remember the spring of my
life, and cry."

The wise man stood there in the field of snow, staring

at a fixed point and contemplating. At a certain point, the woman
stopped crying:

"What do you see there?" she asked. "A field of

roses," answered the wise man. "God was generous with me when he gave
me the ability to remember. He knew that in winter, I could always
remember spring -- and smile."

The master says: "One's personal destiny is not as simple as it

appears. Not at all. It may even call for some sort of dangerous
action. When we want something, we put into motion some powerful
energies, and we are no longer able to conceal from ourselves the true
meaning of our life. When we want something, we make a choice and we
pay a price.

"To follow one's dream carries a price. It may demand

that we give up old habits, it may create problems for us, and it may
bring disappointment.

"But, no matter how high the price, it is never

so high as
>at we pay for not having lived out our personal destiny. Because one
day we will look back and see everything we have done, and hear our own
heart say: 'I wasted my life.'

"Believe me, that is the worst

phrase you can ever hear."

A master had hundreds of disciples. All of them prayed at the

appropriate time -- except one, who was a drunkard.

On the day that he

was dying, the master called the drunken disciple to his side, and
passed on to him all of his occult secrets. The other disciples were
revolted: "What a shame! We sacrificed everything for a master who was
unable to perceive our qualities," they said.

The master said: "I had

to pass on these secrets to a man I knew well. Those who appear to be
virtuous generally conceal their vanity, their pride and their
intolerance. So, I chose the only disciple whose defects I could see:
the drinker."

The Cistercian father Marcos Garcia said: "Sometimes God takes

back a certain blessing in order to help the person understand it
better. God knows up to what point he can test a soul -- and he never
goes beyond that point. "At such times, we never say: 'God has abandoned
me.' If the Lord imposes a demanding test upon us, he always provides
us with a sufficient number of graces -- probably more than sufficient -
- to meet the test.

"When we feel far from His presence, we should

ask ourselves: 'Do we understand how to make use of what he has placed
in our path?'"

Sometimes days or weeks pass without our having received a gesture

of affection from anyone. Such periods are difficult; when human
kindness seems to have disappeared, and life seems to be simply a matter
of survival.

The master says: "We must examine our own fireplace.

We must place more kindling, and try to illuminate the dark room that
our life has become. When we hear our fire crackling and the burning
wood snapping, and when we read the stories the flames are telling, hope
returns to us.

""If we are capable of loving, we will also be capable

of being loved. It is only a matter
>f time."

At a luncheon, a person broke his glass. Another person said,

"That's a sign of good luck." Everyone at the table knew of the belief.

But a rabbi who was there asked: "Why is that a sign of good

luck?"

"I don't know," said the wanderer's wife. "Perhaps it's an

ancient way of preventing the guest from feeling bad."

"No, that's

not the explanation," the rabbi said. "Certain Jewish traditions have
it that every man has a certain quota of luck, which he uses up over the
course of his life. One can make that quota pay interest if he uses his
luck only for things he really needs -- or he can use his luck in a
wasteful fashion. "We Jews also say 'Good luck' when someone breaks a
glass. But it means, 'It's good that you didn't use up any of your luck
trying to keep the glass from breaking. Now, you can use it for more
important things.'"

Padre Abraham knew that close to the monastery at Sceta lived a

hermit reputed to be a wise man.

He sought the man out and asked him:

"If you were to find a beautiful woman in your bed today, would you be
able to convince yourself that it was not a woman?"

"No," answered the

wise man. "But I would be able to control myself."

The padre went on:

"And if you found some gold coins in the desert, would you be able to
regard the money as stones?" "No," said the wise man. "But I would be
able to control myself and leave them there."

The padre insisted: "And

if you were consulted by two brothers, one of whom hates you and the
other of whom loves you, would you be able to regard them as equals?"

The hermit answered: "Even though I might suffer inside, I would

treat the one who loved me in the same way as the one who hated me."

"I will explain to you what a wise man is," the padre later told

his disciples. "It is he who, rather than killing his passions, is able
to control them."

W. Frasier, throughout his life, wrote about the American west,

and was proud of having written the screenplay for a film that starred
Gary Cooper. He said that there were ver
>few times in his life when he became angry.

"I learned many things

from the pioneers," he said. "They fought the indians, crossed deserts,
searched for food and water in remote places. And all that was written
during that period shows that they demonstrated a curious trait: the
pioneers wrote only about and talked about only good things. Instead of
complaining, they composed songs and jokes about their difficulties.
That way, they avoided discouragement and depression. And today, at age
88, I try to do the same thing."

The text is adapted from a poem by John Muir:

"I want to free my

soul so that it can enjoy all of the gifts that the spirits own. When
this is possible, I will not try to know the craters of the moon, nor
track the rays of the sun to their source. I will not try to understand
the beauty of a star, nor the artificial desolation of a human being.

"When I learn how to free my soul, I will follow the dawn, and to

return with it through time. When I learn how to free my soul, I will
plunge into the magnetic currents that drain into an ocean where all
waters meet to form the Soul of the World.

"When I learn how to

free my soul, I will try to read the splendid page of Creation from the
beginning."

One of the sacred symbols of Christianity is the figure of the

pelican. The reason is simple: in the total absence of food to eat, the
pelican plunges its beak into its own flesh to feed its young.

The

master says:

"We are often incapable of understanding the blessings

we have received. Many times we do not perceive what He does to keep us
spiritually nourished. There is a story about a pelican who -- during a
hard winter -- sacrificed herself by providing her own flesh to her
children. When she finally died of weakness, one of the nestlings said
to another: 'Finally! I was getting tired of eating the same old thing
every day.'"

If you are dissatisfied with something -- even a good thing that

you would like to do, but have not been able to -- stop now.

If

things are not going
>ll, there are only two explanations: either your perseverance is being
tested, or you need to change direction. In order to discover which of
those options is correct -- since they are opposites -- make use of
silence and prayer. Little by little, things will become strangely
clear, until you have sufficient strength to choose. Once you have made
your decision, forget completely the other possibility. And go forward,
because God is the God of the Valiant.

Domingos Sabino said:

"Everything always turns out for the best. If things are not going
well, it is because you have not yet reached the end."

The Brazilian composer, Nelson Motta, was in Bahia, when he

decided to pay a visit to Mother Menininha de Gantois. He caught a
taxi, and on their way, the driver lost his brakes. The car spun around
in the middle of the road, but other than being frightened, nothing
serious occurred. When he met with Mother Menininha, the first thing
Nelson told her about was the near accident in the middle of the road.

"There are certain things that are already written, but God finds

us a way to get past them without any serious problem. That is, it was
a part of your destiny to be in an automobile accident at this point in
your life," she said.

"But, as you see, everything happened -- and

nothing."

"There was something missing from your talk about the Road to

Santiago," said a pilgrim to the wanderer as they were leaving the
conference together.

"I have noticed that the majority of pilgrims,"

she said, "whether on the Road to Santiago or on their paths through
life, always seek to follow the same pace as the others.

"At the

beginning of my pilgrimage, I tried to walk at the same pace as my
group. I got tired, I demanded more of my body than it could deliver, I
was tense, and I wound up with problems in the tendons of my left foot.
It was impossible for me to walk for two days, and I learned that I
would be able to get to Santiago only if I went at my own pace.

"It

took me longer than the others, and I walked
>lone for many stretches along the road. But it was only because I
respected my own pace that I was able to walk the entire road. Since
then, I have applied that lesson to everything I do in my life."

Croesus, the king of Lydia, had made the decision to attack the

Persians, but nevertheless wanted to consult with a Greek oracle. "You
are fated to destroy a great empire," the oracle said. Happily, Croesus
declared war. After two days of battle, Lydia was invaded by the
Persians, its capital was sacked, and Croesus was taken prisoner.
Revolted, he asked his ambassador to Greece to go back to the oracle and
tell him how wrong he had been. "No, it was you who were wrong," said
the oracle to the ambassador. "You destroyed a great empire: Lydia."

The master says: "The language of signs is there is before us, to

teach us the best way to act. But many times we try to distort those
signs so that they "agree" with what we wanted to do in the first place.

Buscaglia tells the story about the fourth of the Magi, who also

saw the star shining over Bethlehem. But he was always late in arriving
at the place where Jesus might be, because along the way, the poor and
needy stopped him to ask him for help.

After thirty years of

following in Jesus's footsteps, through Egypt, Galilee and Bethany, the
magus reached Jerusalem, but was again too late. The child Jesus was
now a man, and the magus had arrived on the day of the crucifixion. The
king had brought pearls to give to Jesus, but had sold everything in
order to help those whom he had met along the way. Only one pearl
remained, but the Saviour was already dead.

"I have failed in the

mission of my life," the king thought. And then he heard a voice:

"Contrary to what you are thinking, you have been with me all your

life. I was nude, and you dressed me. I was hungry, and you fed me. I
was imprisoned, and you visited me. I was in every poor soul along the
way. Thank you for so many presents of love."

A science fiction story tells of a society whe

> almost everyone is born ready to perform a function: technicians,
engineers or mechanics. Only a few are born without any skills: these
are sent to an insane asylum, since only crazy people are unable to make
a contribution to society.

One of the insane rebels. The asylum has

a library, where he attempts to learn everything there is to know about
the arts and sciences. When he feels that he knows enough, he decides
to escape, but he is captured and taken to a research center outside the
city. "Welcome," says one of the people in charge of the center. "It is
those who have been forced to make their own way that we admire most.
From now on, you may do as you please, since it is thanks to people like
you that the world is able to progress."

Before leaving on a long trip, a businessman was saying good-bye

to his wife.

"You have never brought me a present that was worthy

of me," she said. "You ungrateful woman, everything I have given you
cost me years of work," the man answered. "What else can I give you?"

"Something that is as beautiful as I am." For two years, the woman

awaited her present. Finally, her husband returned. "I was able to
find something that is as beautiful as you," he said. "I wept at your
ingratitude, but I resolved that I would do as you asked. I thought all
this time that there couldn't be a present as beautiful as you, but I
found one." And he handed her a mirror.

The German philosopher, F. Nietzsche, once said: "It's not

worthwhile to spend time discussing everything; it is a part of the
human condition to err from time to time."

The master says: "There

are people who insist that they be right about even minor details. They
often do not permit themselves to make a mistake.

"What they

accomplish with that attitude is a fear of moving ahead.

"Fear of

making a mistake is the door that locks us into the castle of
mediocrity. If we are able to overcome that fear, we have taken an
important step in the direction of our freedom."

A novice asked the Father Superior

>isteros at the monastery at Sceta: "What are the things I should do in
order to please God?"

Father Nisteros answered: "Abraham accepted

strangers, and God was happy. Elijah did not like strangers, and God
was happy. David was proud of what he did, and God was happy. The
Roman publican, before the altar, was ashamed of what he did, and God
was happy. John the Baptist went into the desert, and God was happy.
Jonah went to the great city of Ninevah, and God was happy. "Ask your
soul what it wants to do. When your soul is in agreement with your
dreams, it makes God happy."

A Buddhist master was traveling on foot with his disciples, when

he noted that they were discussing among themselves who was the best.

"I have practiced meditation for fifteen years," said one. "I

have been charitable ever since I left my parents' home," said another.

"I have always followed the precepts of Buddha," said a third.

At noon, they stopped under an apple tree to rest. The branches

of the tree were loaded down with fruit, to the point that its branches
reached to the ground. "When a tree is laden with fruit, its branches
bend to touch the ground. The truly wise is he who is humble.

"When

a tree bears no fruit, its branches are arrogant and haughty. The
foolish man always believes that he is better than others."

Antonio Machado says:

"Blow by blow, step by step, Pathfinder,

there is no path, The path is made to be walked.

By walking, the

path is made,

And if you look back,

All you will see are the marks

Of footsteps that one day

Your feet will once again take.

Pathfinder, there is no path, The path is made to be walked."

At the Last Supper, Jesus accused -- with the same gravity and

using the same phrase -- two of his apostles. Both had committed the
crimes foreseen by Jesus.

Judas Iscariot recovered his senses and

condemned himself. Peter also recovered his senses, after denying three
times everything he had believed in.

But at the decisive moment,

Peter understood the true meaning of Jesus'
>message. He asked forgiveness and went on, humiliated.

He could

have chosen suicide, but instead he faced the other apostles and must
have said: "Okay, speak of my error for as long as the human race
exists. But let me correct it."

Peter understood that Love forgives.

Judas understood nothing.

A famous writer was walking with a friend when a boy started to

cross the street in front of an oncoming truck. The writer, in a
fraction of a second, threw himself in front of the truck and was able
to save the boy. But, before anyone could praise him for his act of
heroism, he slapped the boy across the face.

"Don't be fooled by

appearances, my boy," he said. "I saved you only so that you couldn't
evade the problems you will have as an adult." The master says:

"Sometimes we are afraid of doing good. Our sense of guilt always

tries to tell us that -- when we act with generosity -- we are merely
trying to impress others. It is difficult for us to accept that we are
good by nature. We mask our good acts with irony and indifference, as
if live were synonymous with weakness."

Jesus looked at the table before him, wondering what would be the

best symbol of his passage on Earth. On the table were pomegranates
from Galilee, spices from the deserts of the south, dried fruits from
Syria and Egyptian dates.

He must have extended His hand to

consecrate one of them, when suddenly he recalled the message that he
brought was for all men everywhere. And perhaps pomegranates and dates
did not exist is some parts of the world. He looked about him, and
another thought occurred to him: in the pomegranates and the dates and
the fruits, the miracle of Creation manifested itself without any
interference by human beings. So he picked up the bread, gave thanks,
and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: "Take and eat, all
of you, for this is my Body." Because bread was everywhere. And
bread, in contrast with the dates, the pomegranates and the fruits of
Syria, was the best symbol of the path toward God.
>read was the fruit of the earth and of man's labors.

The juggler stops in the middle of the plaza, pulls out three

oranges and begins to toss them. People gather round and marvel at the
grace and elegance of his movements.

"That's what life's like, more

or less," someone standing there with the wanderer says. "We always
have an orange in each hand, and one in the air. But that one in the
air makes all the difference. It was thrown with ability and
experience, but it follows its own course.

"Like the juggler, we

throw a dream out into the world, but we don't always have control over
it. At times like that, you have to know how to put yourself in God's
hands -- and ask that, in due time, the dream follows its course
correctly and falls, completed, back into your hand."

One of the most powerful exercises in interior growth consists in

paying attention to things we do automatically -- like breathing,
blinking our eyes, or attending to things around us. When we do this,
we allow our brain to work with greater freedom -- without the
interference of our desires. Certain problems that appeared to be
insoluble wind up being resolved, and certain pains that we thought
could never be overcome wind up dissipating effortlessly.

The master

says: "When you have to confront a difficult situation, try to use that
technique. It requires a bit of discipline...but the results can be
surprising.

A man is at a fair, selling vases. A woman approaches and

examines his merchandise. Some pieces are undecorated, while others
have carefully wrought designs.

The woman asks the price of the

vases. To her surprise, she learns that they all cost the same. "How
can the decorated vase cost the same as the simple ones?" she asks.
"Why charge the same for a vase that it took more time and effort to
make?"

"I am an artist," the seller says. "I can charge for the

vase I made, but not for its beauty. The beauty is free."

The wanderer was seated alone at a mass. Suddenly, he was

approached by a friend. "I have
> talk to you," the friend said.

The wanderer saw in the meeting a

sign, and began to talk about what he considered to be important. He
spoke of God's blessings, of love, and of the fact that he saw his
friend's arrival as a signal from his angel, because moments before the
wanderer had felt alone, whereas now he had company. The friend
listened without saying a word, thanked the wanderer, and left.

Rather

than happiness, the wanderer fell more alone than ever. Later, he
realized that, in his enthusiasm, he had paid no attention to his
friends request: that he speak.

The wanderer looked down and saw his

words thrown to the floor. Because the Universe wanted something
different to have happened at that moment.

Three fairies were invited to the baptism of a prince. The first

granted the prince the gift of finding his love. The second granted him
enough money to do as he pleased. The third granted him beauty. But,
as in all fairy tales, a witch appeared. She was furious at not having
been invited, and pronounced a curse:

"Because you already have

everything, I'm going to give you even more. You will be talented at
whatever you try to do."

The prince grew up handsome, rich and in

love. But he was never able to complete his mission on Earth. He was
an excellent painter, sculptor, musician, mathematician -- but he was
never able to complete a task because he quickly became distracted and
wanted to move on to something else.

The master says: "All roads

lead to the same place. But choose your own, and follow it to the end.
Do not try to walk every road."

An anonymous text from the XVIII century speaks of a Russian monk

who was looking for a spiritual adviser. One day, he was told that in a
certain village lived a hermit who dedicated himself night and day to
the salvation of his soul. Hearing this, the monk went in search of the
holy man.

"I want you to guide me along the paths of the soul," the

monk said when he found the hermit. "The soul has its own path, and your
angel will guide yo
>" answered the hermit. "Pray without stopping."

"I don't know how

to pray like that. Will you teach me?"

"If you do not know how to

pray incessantly, then pray to God to teach you how to do so."

"You

are teaching me nothing," said the monk. "There is nothing to be
taught, because you cannot transmit faith in the same way that you
transmit knowledge about mathematics. Accept the mystery of faith, and
the Universe will reveal itself."

The master says: "Write!. Whether it's a letter, a diary or just

some notes as you speak on the telephone -- but write!

"In writing,

we come closer to God and to others.

"If you want to understand

your role in the world better, write. Try to put your soul in writing,
even if no one reads your words -- or worse, even if someone winds up
reading what you did not want to be read. The simple fact of writing
helps us to organize our thoughts and see more clearly what is in our
surroundings. A paper and pen perform miracles -- they alleviate pain,
make dreams come true and summon lost hope.

"The word has power."

The monks of the desert affirmed that it was necessary to allow

the hand of the angels to act. In order to bring this about, they
sometimes did absurd things -- such as speaking to the flowers or
laughing without cause. The alchemists follow the "signs from God;"
clues that sometimes make very little sense but wind up leading
somewhere. The master says: "Do not fear being regarded as crazy -- do
something today that fits not at all with the logic you have learned.
Behave is a way that is opposite to the usual serious comportment you
were taught. This little thing, no matter how little it is, can open
the door to a great adventure -- human and spiritual."

A fellow is driving a luxurious Mercedes Benz when he blows a

tire. As he tries to change it, he realizes that he has no jack. "Well,
I'll go to the nearest house and ask if I can borrow one," he thinks, as
he goes in search of help. "Maybe the person I ask, seeing my car,
will charge me for
>nding me his jack," he says to himself. "With a car like this, and
with me asking for help, he'll probably charge me ten dollars. No,
maybe even fifty, because he knows I really need the jack. He might
take advantage of me and charge me as much as a hundred dollars." And
the further he walks, the higher goes the price.

"When he reaches

the nearest house, and the owner opens the door, the man shouts: "You're
a thief!. A jack isn't worth that much! Keep it!"

Who of us can say

that he has never acted that way?

Milton Ericsson is the author of a new therapy that has won over

thousands of practitioners in the United States. When he was twelve, he
contracted polio. Ten months later, he heard a physician tell his
parents: "Your son will not make it through the night."

Ericcson

heard his mother crying. "Who knows, if I make it through the night,
perhaps she won't suffer so," he thought. And he decided not to sleep
until the next day dawned. As the sun rose, he shouted to his mother:
"Hey, I'm still alive!" The joy in the house was so great that he
decided that he would always try to make it through one more night to
put off his family's suffering.

He died at 75 in 1990, leaving a

number of important books about the enormous capacity man has to
overcome his own limitations.

"Holy man," said a novice to the Father Superior, "my heart is

filled with love for the world, and my heart is cleansed of the
temptations of the devil. What is the next step?"

The padre asked

the disciple to go with him to visit an ill person who was in need of
extreme unction. After comforting the family, the father noticed a
trunk in one of the corners. "What is in that trunk?" he asked. "The
clothing that my uncle never wore," said his niece. "He always thought
that there would be some occasion for wearing them, but they wound up
rotting in the trunk." "Don't forget that trunk," the father said to
the disciple as they left. "If you have spiritual treasures in your
heart, put them into practice now. Or they will s
>il."

Mystics say that when we begin our spiritual path, we want to

speak often with God -- and we wind up not listening to what He has to
say to us. The master says: "Relax a bit. It is not easy. We have a
natural need always to do the right thing, and we think we can do that
if we work unceasingly. "It is important to try, to fall, to get up and
try again. But let us allow God to help. In the middle of a great
effort, let us look at ourselves, allow Him to reveal himself and guide
us.

"Let us sometimes allow Him to take us onto his lap."

A padre at the monastery at Sceta was sought out by a young man

who wanted to follow the spiritual path. "For a period of a year, pay
money to whoever attacks you," said the padre. For twelve months, the
young man made payment whenever he was attacked. At the end of the
year, he went back to the padre to learn what the next step was. "Go
into the city and buy food for me," the padre said.

As soon as the man

left, the padre disguised himself as a beggar, and using a short cut
that he knew, went to the gates of the city. When the man approached,
the padre began to insult him.

"This is great!" said the man to the

false beggar. "For an entire year, I had to pay anyone who insulted me,
and now I can be attacked for free, without spending a cent."

Hearing that, the padre took off his disguise. "You are ready for

the next step, because you have learned to laugh in the face of your
problems," he said.

The wanderer was walking with two of his friends through the

streets of New York. Suddenly, in the midst of a casual conversation,
the other two began to argue, almost attacking each other. Later --
when things had calmed down -- they were sitting in a bar. One of them
apologized to the other.

"I've noticed that it's very easy to be

hurtful to those you know," he said. "If you were a stranger, I would
have controlled myself much more. But because we are friends -- and you
know me better than anyone does -- I wound up being much more
aggressive. That'
>human nature."

Maybe it is human nature. But we should fight against

it.

There are moments when we would very much like to help someone,

but there is nothing we can do. Either the circumstances do not allow
us to offer help, or the person is not receptive to any expression of
relatedness and support.

The master says: "There is always love.

Even at those times when we feel most useless, we can still love --
without expectation of reward, change or thanks.

"If we are able to

act in that way, the energy of love begins to transform the Universe
around us. When this energy appears, it is always able to do its work.

Fifteen years ago, during a period of profound rejection of faith,

the wanderer was with his wife and a friend in Rio de Janeiro. As they
were having a drink together, an old buddy with whom the wanderer had
shared the craziness of the 60s and 70s came into the bar. "What are
you doing now?" the wanderer asked. "I'm a priest." his friend said.

As they left the place, the wanderer pointed at a child sleeping

on the sidewalk. "See how concerned Jesus is with the world?" he said.

"Of course I see," said the priest. "He placed that child right

in front of you to make sure that you saw him, so that you could do
something."

A group of Jewish wise men met in order to try to create the

shortest Constitution in the world. The rule for the meeting was that
if -- within the time span that he could balance himself on one foot --
one of them could define the laws that should govern man, he would be
regarded as the wisest of them.

"May God punish the criminals," said

one.

The others argued that this wasn't a law, but a threat. The

phrase wasn't accepted. At this point, the rabbi Hillel joined the
meeting. Placing himself on one foot, he said: "Do not do unto others
anything you would not want him to do unto you. This is the Law. All
the rest is judicial commentary."

So the rabbi Hillel was considered

the wisest of them.

The writer, George Bernard Shaw noticed a huge block of

>one in the living room of a friend, the sculptor, J. Epstein. "What
are you going to do with that stone?" Shaw asked.

"I don't know yet.

I'm thinking about it," Epstein answered. Shaw was surprised: "You mean
you plan your own inspiration? Don't you think an artist has to be free
to change his mind when he wants to?"

"That only works when -- after

changing your mind -- all you have to do ball up a piece of paper that
weights five grams. But, when you are dealing with four tons, you have
to think differently," Epstein said.

The master says: "Each

of us knows the best way to do his work. Only the person confronted
with the task knows what problems are involved."

Brother John was thinking: "I need to be like the angels. They do

nothing but contemplate the glory of God." And that night, he left the
monastery at Sceta and went into the desert.

A week later he returned

to the monastery. The brother at the gate heard him knock, and asked
who it was. "It's Brother John. I'm hungry."

"That cannot be," said

the brother. "Brother John is in the desert, transforming himself into
an angel. He no longer feels hunger, and no longer has to work to
support himself." "Forgive my pride," said Brother John. "Angels are
helpful to man. That is their work, and that is why they contemplate
the glory of God. I can contemplate the same glory in doing my daily
work."

With those words of humility, the brother opened the gate.

Of all the powerful arms of destruction that man has been able to

invent, the most terrible -- and most cowardly -- is the word.

Fists

and firearms at least leave some blood remaining. Bombs destroy houses
and streets. Poisons can be detected.

The master says: "The word

can destroy without leaving a clue. Children are conditioned for years
by their parents, men are impiously criticized, women are systematically
massacred by the words of their husbands. The faithful are kept far
away from religion by those who regard themselves as the interpreters of
the voice of God. "Verify
>hether you are making use of this weapon. See whether others are using
this weapon on you. And prevent either of those from continuing."

A legend of the desert tells the story of a man who wanted to move

to another oasis, and began to load up his camel. He piled on his rugs,
his cooking utensils, his trunks of clothes -- and the animal accepted
it all. As they were leaving, the man remembered a beautiful blue
feather his father had given him.

He retrieved it and placed it on the

camel's back. With that, the animal collapsed of the weight and died.

"My camel couldn't even bear the weight of a feather," the man

must have thought.

Sometimes we think the same of others -- without

understanding that our little joke may have been the drop that caused
the goblet of suffering to overflow.

"Sometimes people get used to what they see in films and forget

the real story," someone says to the wanderer. "Do you remember the
film, 'The Ten Commandments?'"

"Of course. Moses -- Charlton

Heston -- raises his staff, the waters open, and the people of Israel
are able to cross the Red Sea."

"In the Bible, that's not how it

was," says the person. "There, God gives an order to Moses: 'Tell the
children of Israel to march.' And it is only after they begin to move
forward that Moses raises his staff and the waters part.

"Because

only courage in walking the path makes the path reveal itself."

This was written by the cellist, Pablo Casals: "I am always being

reborn. Every morning is a time to begin life again. Eighty years ago
I began my day in the same way -- but this doesn't mean it is a
mechanical routine. It is essential to my happiness. "I awaken, and I
go to the piano and play two preludes and a fugue from Bach. These
pieces function as a blessing upon my house. But this practice is also
a way of reestablishing contact with the mystery of life and with the
miracle of being a human being.

"Even though I've done this for

eighty years, the music is never the same -- it always teaches me
something ne
> fantastic, unbelievable."

The master says: "On the one hand, we know that it is important

to seek God. On the other, life creates a distance between us and Him.
We feel ignored by the Divinity, or we are preoccupied with our daily
tasks. This creates a feeling of guilt: either we are renouncing life
to too much of an extent because of God, or we feel we are renouncing
God too much because of life. "This apparent conflict is a fantasy: God
is in life and life is in God. One has only to be aware of this in
order to understand fate better. If we are able to penetrate into the
holy harmony of our daily round, we will always be on the right path,
and we will complete our task."

The phrase is from Pablo Picasso: "God is an artist. He invented

the giraffe, the elephant and the ant. Actually, he never sought for a
style -- he was simply doing everything that he wanted to do."

The

master says:

"When we begin along our path, a great fear arises.

We feel obligated to do everything right. In the end, since we have
only one life to live, who was it that invented the standard of
"Everything right?" God made the giraffe, the elephant and the ant --
why do we have to follow a standard?

"A standard serves only to

show us how others define their own reality. Often we admire the models
of others, and many times we can avoid the errors committed by others.

"But as for living well -- only we know how to do that for

ourselves."

Several devout Jews were praying at the synagogue when, during the

prayer, they heard a child's voice saying: "A, B, C, D." They tried to
concentrate on the scripture, but the voice repeated, "A, B, C, D."
They interrupted the service, and, when they looked around, saw a boy
who continued with the same chant. The rabbi spoke to the boy: "Why are
you doing that?" "Because I don't know the holy verses," the boy said.
"So I was hoping that if I recited the alphabet, God would use the
letters to form the right words."

"Thank you for this lesson," said

the rabbi. "And may I gi
> to God my days on this Earth in the same way that you have given him
your letters."

The master says: "The spirit of God that is present in us can be

described as being the screen in a movie theater. On the screen,
various situations occur -- people love, people separate, treasures are
found, distant countries are discovered. "It is not important which
film is being shown. The screen is always the same. It is not
important if tears fall or blood runs -- because nothing can stain the
whiteness of the screen.

"Just as with the movie screen, God is

there -- behind every one of life's agonies and ecstasies. We will see
them all when our film ends."

An archer was walking in the woods near a Hindu monastery known

for the severity of its teachings, when he saw the monks in the garden,
drinking and enjoying themselves.

"How cynical are those who seek the

path to God," said the archer aloud. "They say that discipline is
important, but there they are getting drunk!"

"If you shoot one

hundred arrows in a row, what will happen to your bow?" asked the eldest
of the monks.

"My bow would break," answered the archer.

"If

someone exceeds his limits, their will is also broken," said the monk.
He who is unable to balance work with relaxation loses his enthusiasm,
and cannot go far."

A king sent a messenger to a distant country with a peace

agreement that was to be signed. Wanting to take advantage of the
journey, the messenger informed some of his friends that had important
business dealings in that country. They asked that he postpone his
trip, and -- since a peace agreement was to be signed -- they wrote new
orders, and changed their business strategies. When the messenger
finally made the trip, it was already too late for the agreement he was
to deliver; war broke out, destroying the king's plans and the business
arrangements of the men who had delayed the messenger.

The master

says: "There is only one important thing in our lives: to live our
personal destiny -- the mission that was fated for us
> But we always wind up loading ourselves down with useless concerns
that then destroy our dream."

The wanderer is in the port of Sydney, looking out at the bridge

that connects the two parts of the city, when an Australian approaches
him and asks that he read an ad in the newspaper.

"The letters are

quite small," he says. "I left my glasses at home, and I can't make
them out." The wanderer is also without his reading glasses, and
apologizes to the man. "Well, I guess I'll just forget about the ad,"
says the man. And, wanting to continue the conversation, he says, "It's
not just the two of us. God's vision is also clouded. Not because he
is old, but because he wants it that way. Then, when someone close to
Him commits an error, He is unable to see it clearly. Not wanting to be
unfair, he forgives the person."

"And what about the 'good things,'"

I ask.

"Well, God never leaves his glasses at home," laughs the

Australian as he moves on.

"Is there anything more important than prayer?" asked the disciple

of his master.

The master asked the disciple to go to a nearby bush

and cut off a branch. The disciple obeyed.

"Is the bush still

alive?" asked the master.

"Just as alive as before," answered the

disciple.

"Now go and cut the roots," said the master.

"If I do

that, the bush will die," said the disciple.

"Prayers are the

branches of a tree, whose roots are called faith," said the master.
"There can be faith without prayer. But there can be no prayer without
faith."

Saint Teresa d'Avila says:

"Remember: the Lord invited all of

us, and -- since He is the pure truth -- we cannot doubt his invitation.
He said: 'Come to me all who are thirsty, and I will give you to drink.'

"If the invitation were not for each and every one of us, the Lord

would have said: 'Come to me all who wish to, because you have nothing
to lose. But I will provide drink only for those who are prepared.'

He imposes no conditions. It is enough to walk and desire, and

all will receive the Water of Life of his love.
>

The Zen monks, when they wish to meditate, sit before a rock: "Now

I will wait for this rock to grow a bit," they say.

The master says:

"Everything around us is constantly changing. Every day, the sun

shines upon a new world. What we call routine is full of new proposals
and opportunities. But we do not perceive that each day is different
from all the others.

"Today, in some place, a treasure awaits you.

It may be a fleeting smile, it may be a great victory -- it doesn't
matter. Life is made up of large and small miracles. Nothing is
boring, because everything constantly changes. Tedium is not of the
world.

"The poet, T. S. Eliot, wrote: 'Walk many highways/ return

to your home/ and view everything as if for the first time.'